The potential of long bean and cucumber as intercrops with ginger on Malaysian peat

A. C. Leong

Abstract

The studies involved two experiments. the second experiment being a follow up to the first , to investigate the compatibility of cucumber and long bean as intercrops for ginger on Malaysian peat. A replicated 2² factorial trial with three controls was laid out in randomized complete block design. From the results of the first experiment. long bean and cucumber were found to be compatible as intercrops with ginger. Ginger yield can be improved further if planted 1 month earlier than the intercrops. Ginger must be planted outside the rows of the intercrops and harvested only at 9 months after planting. The recommended fertilizer levels must be applied for the individual crop of ginger. cucumber and long bean in the intercropping system. In the follow-up experiment. yield of ginger improved significantly following the agronomic recommendations suggested in the first experiment. Ginger further benefited from the complementary effects of intercrop association. Fertilizer application for ginger can be carried out at 4-weekly or 8-weekly intervals respectively up to 28 weeks and 32 weeks after planting of ginger. Long bean should be planted as the second rather than the third crop in the cropping sequence. From the yield. land equivalent ratio and the total net returns per hectare obtained.  The best intercropping system was G-B-C where ginger was planted as the first crop followed by long bean and cucumber.

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